to come on board and prepare?"

"You must do as you please," replied I, "I am indifferent which. It
will be dark in another hour, and she will not be down by that time. I
would rather avoid fighting, and get away from the schooner quietly if I
could, but that I fear is impossible now."

"Well, I must go on board of the brig and let them know, for if they
find it out themselves they will throw us overboard."

Captain Toplift then went on board of the brig, and railing to the men
who were still sober, told them that there was a king's ship coming down
upon them not seven miles off. This had the effect of putting an end to
the confusion and noise of a great portion of the men, who hastened on
board of the schooner, but others, who were intoxicated, were with
difficulty persuaded to return.

At last they were all got on board, and the schooner, clear from the
brig, was made ready for action; but Toplift was obliged to make some
alteration in the stationing of the men, as those who were to hand up
the powder were all of them tipsy. By the time that the schooner was
ready, and the breeze had come down to her, the corvette was not more
than three miles from us; but it was quite dark, for there is no
twilight in those parts. We consulted what course we should take to
avoid her, if possible, and agreed that we would stand in shore and pass
her if we possibly could. We knew that, if seen, we were then certain
to be obliged to fight; but if not seen, we might escape.

We then shifted the helm and bore up across her bows, but we had not
steered in this direction more than a quarter of an hour, when the
Transcendant was perceived to be on fire, having been fired by the
drunken men before they left her, and soon afterwards she burst out into
flames that threw a strong light to a great distance, discovering the
corvette to us at two miles' distance, and of course exposing us to the
corvette, who immediately altered her course for us. We had therefore
only to fight, and the crew, being most of them in liquor, declared that
they would fight till the schooner sunk under them. In a quarter of an
hour, the corvette being close to us, and standing stem on, we opened
our fire, raking her masts and yards, and then I went down below. I had
changed my clothes for the duck trousers and shirt which I had swum on
board in, and I now remained quietly in the cabin. A few minutes
afterwards the corvette opened her fire, and the shot di